Page 8 of Ruined (The Knights of Ruin)

Annie, who’d been silent in the back, nodded. She wouldn’t pick up the really adult vibes, but she’d know something was up. She was a perceptive kid.

‘We’re not going anywhere now?’

‘Nope,’ I said, before Justin could speak. ‘Wanna go for a ride on my bike?’

‘Yeah!’

I got Annie out myself, ignoring her father as he said his goodbyes. Then I grabbed her backpack and stowed it in the saddlebag on the bike, leaving Justin to go scrabbling around in the street for his keys.

Sitting her up in front of me, she grabbed onto my arms without me having to tell her. She’d been riding on the Harley almost since before she could talk, so she knew what to do.

I texted Cat to let her know I had Annie, then we roared out of there.

Fifteen minutes and we were at Cat’s run-down apartment building. Yeah, it wasn’t the greatest place to raise a kid, but she had good neighbours and the apartment itself was clean and tidy. She was a great mom and, really, that’s all that counts for a kid. Annie had clean clothes, food, a bed at night and people who loved her. People who didn’t beat the shit out of her. And that’s plenty more than a lot of kids had.

Cat was waiting out front, her hands in the pockets of her jeans, trying to look casual, but I knew she wasn’t. As I pulled up the bike she ran down the stairs, taking them two at a time to get to us.

‘Hey, honey,’ she said as she picked Annie up. ‘How was Daddy’s?’ She didn’t act panicked, but I could hear the sound of it in her voice anyway.

Annie didn’t seem to notice, chattering on about what she’d done that afternoon.

Cat didn’t say anything to me, but she didn’t need to. The look she gave me out of those big green eyes of hers said it all.

I followed them up the stairs after I’d got Annie’s stuff out from the saddlebag of the bike and into her apartment. Cat didn’t bother to ask me any questions, too busy murmuring to Annie about how she needed to get into her pyjamas and brush her teeth because it was late.

I let her do all the kid shit first, going into the tiny, scrupulously clean kitchen and pulling open the fridge door. She usually kept a couple of cans of my favourite beer, and sure enough there was one on the shelf. I took it and went back out to the lounge, popping the tab as I sat down on the faded chintz couch that she kept covered with an Indian-patterned throw thing.

There was a low wooden coffee table in front of the couch and I swung my boots up on it like I always did, taking a swallow of my beer and sitting back.

I liked Cat’s place. I had a room at the Knight’s clubhouse, and that was cool, but I didn’t have an apartment or anything. It was a choice I’d made a long time ago, but that didn’t mean I didn’t like coming around to Cat’s and hanging out.

Cat kept the apartment homey, with all the decor shit she liked, despite the threadbare carpet and the dingy wallpaper. The most important thing, though, was that it had Cat in it.

That’s why I liked it. That’s why I kept coming there.

She’d been my friend since I was seven years old and with any luck she’ll stay my friend for the rest of time.

As long as I didn’t fuck it up.

I’d been good for years so far—no reason to think I wouldn’t stay being good.

Cat finally appeared fifteen minutes later, walking into the living area with her hands in the pockets of her jeans again. She always did that when she was nervous, as if she thought her hands were going to give her away or something.

Her black hair was in a loose ponytail at the nape of her neck, all glossy and shiny like a slick of oil on a hot day. But she looked pale. Tired. There were dark circles under her green eyes and lines of strain around her full, pouty mouth.

Yeah, even tired and stressed out, she was so fucking beautiful.

But then she always had been.

She didn’t look at me as she came around one of the ratty armchairs opposite the couch and sat down on it. In fact it seemed as if she was avoiding looking at me completely.

For a second I wondered what the problem was. Then I remembered.

The last time she’d seen me I’d been standing in the hallway with my dick in Hannah’s mouth.

Ah. Fuck.

‘So what went down with Justin?’ Cat asked.

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